European Equal Pay Day: 16.2% gender pay gap is intolerable

"While the first Directive on gender pay equality dates back to 1975, more than thirty years later, an average pay gap of 16.2% still exists between men and women. This is unacceptable. On this third European Equal Pay Day, we reiterate our political Group's call to the European Commission to improve legislation and make it more efficient so that we can finally say goodbye to the gender pay gap," said EPP Group MEPs Edit Bauer and Mariya Gabriel on Thursday.

"Social and economic factors, undervaluation of women's work, unequal balance of work and private life and the persistence of stereotypes: the gender pay gap has multiple causes which need to be tackled one by one," said Edit Bauer MEP, whose report on the issue was adopted by a large majority of the European Parliament in May 2012.

"Let us not forget that half of all pay differences are purely discriminatory and not based on any difference in skill, experience or on economic or social factors. So the answer has to be holistic and multi-level too, combining legislative and non-legislative measures," she added.

"It is in the best interest of all industry and business leaders to integrate smart women in their companies, as this contributes to economic efficiency. And it is in their interest to pay them according to their performance, on an equal footing with men," highlighted Mariya Gabriel MEP, EPP Group Spokeswoman in the EP Women's Rights and Gender Equality Committee.

"European citizens can count on us to continue the fight towards gender equality in every sector of our societies," they concluded.